Quizzing World Cup Final

 

I won't pot any spoilers and congratulate the winners, but see above the video of the 2020 Quizzing World Cup Final between Scotland 'A' and the USA. Well worth an hour of your time to watch!

New Quizzing World Champion - Ravi Avva

 

Congratulations to Ravi Avva who has been crowned the 2020 World Quizzing Champion. Given the current state of the world, the contest held on Zoom this year, and controversial as the decisions was, hundreds of quizzers across the globe took part. The final results were always going to be a source of discussion and Ravi's 4 point win must be classed as one of the most impressive World Quizzing Championship victories (and year on year improvements) in the history of the contest. 

See above a video with World Quizzing Championship organiser Jane Allen interviewing Ravi about his victory. I am sure we all will follow Ravi's future endeavours with great interest. 

Connections Quiz League

 

The quiz world has changed in 2020, many will say for the better, as competitions move online. The success of such competitions moving online, and new ones launching, is that it has opened up the door for a lot more quizzing for a lot more people! Jon Stitcher has been a key driving force behind this and alongside the Online Quiz League, the Lowbrow MIMIR  (launching January 2020) and the Brain of OQL....Jon is now launching a further league to keep us all busy.

Based on the hit TV series 'Only Connect', Jon is looking for upwards of 24 teams of 3 to join the Connections Online Quiz League. With assigned hosts, technology driven games and a true "turn and play" experience the league is set to cost £150 to join. But given the quality of questions and the hosts etc, its good value for money!

A trio from the online team I am part of "Disparate Origins" have entered and I hope to see you ther.e If you enter please mention either The Quiz Addict or Daniel Fullard in your entry from

Full information here!

Online Quiz League - Individual Contest - Low Brow MIMIR

 

With the Online Quiz League growing season on season, organiser Jon Stitcher is launching an individual MIMIR style competition focused on "low brow quizzing". The event is pitched at quizzers of all backgrounds and experience and the format works in a way whereby after a few games you will be playing people of your own ability. So whatever your quizzing aims....there is something from everyone. If the OQL is anything to judge by, you can expect a great community of players, superbly written questions and an excellently organised event!

Full information and sign up details HERE  (Please mention either The Quiz Addict or Daniel Fullard when signing up!)

Online Quiz League - Spares

In addition to the Quiz League sets which I have posted early in the week, I also added in a few spare questions in case they were needed. To round off the set, here are those for you to look at as well. Remember my full set, as well as the entire archive for the league can be found HERE

Two Booker Prize winning novels were the basis for movies that won Best Picture Oscars in the 1990s. Schindler’s List was one, what was the other?	The English Patient
The name of which Alpine Goat is included in the name of the Spanish Stock Market Index ?	Ibex
The plinth of the statue of which Labour politician, standing in Buchanan Street, Glasgow, is inscribed with the opening words of the Scotland Act: “There Shall Be a Scottish Parliament	Donald Dewar
Two European capitals lie on the same latitude (48º__´N) as Paris. One is Bratislava, name the other?	Vienna
Who was elected Prime Minister in the year that 18 year olds were allowed to vote for the first time in Britain?	Edward Heath
Which Government organisation is housed in a building known as the “Doughnut”?	GCHQ
“Love or Mummy” was the title of the first episode of which 1980s sitcom?	Sorry
The first episode of which classic BBC sitcom involves the main character “having a bit of trouble with the coal shed door”?	Some Mothers Do Av Em
The World Economic Forum takes place each year in Davos. In what European Country is Davos?	Switzerland
What is the name of the American woman who spent four years in an Italian prison for the Murder of British student Meredith Kircher, only for her conviction to be overturned?	Amanda Knox

 

Mastermind 2020/2021 - Heat 7

 

Mastermind 2020/2021

Heat 7

 

After a weeks delay due to the last weeks lockdown/tier announcements , Mastermind returned last night for Heat 7 of the current series. With some experienced and well-known quizzers in the line up, this looked like a tasty heat indeed. Lining up in the black chair were -

 

-        Lawrence Cook

-     Thomas De Bock

-     Sarah Knapper

-     Claire Barrow

 

 

At the end of the specialist round the standings were as follows

 

Claire Barrow	The Gospel of St John	9
Sarah Knapper	Joseph Stalin	9
Lawrence Cook	Joe Calzaghe	8
Thomas De Bock	The Beach Boys	7

 

Nothing in it after the Specialist Subject round as Thomas De Bock strode to the chair. An unlucky start on a question on “HR” sadly set a bit of a tone of the round and an early pass spiral on a string of middling questions left Thomas with a lot to do in the second half. The questions didn’t fall well for Thomas and a score of 8 took Thomas to 15. Humphreys mentioned “the effect of the chair” on the round, and that may indeed have been the case.

On to Lawrence Cook now and a superb, calm and confident General Knowledge round with answers across a wide range of subjects. The scoring started thick and fast and continued throughout the round and  I believe 18 points had been reached before there was even so much as a stutter. A couple of stoppers at that point slowed the scoring down and 5 straight incorrect answers prevented 20 being reached (a rare feat to reach 20 in this series!) but the 11 in the GK round took the score to 19…an imposing target.

 

Sarah Knapper needed double figures on her General Knowledge to stake her claim to a Semi final place. It began to get close with Sarah on target as the round hit the half way stage. Again, answers coming from across the board of subjects and stood on 18 points, Sarah just came in with an incorrect answer just after the buzzer meaning no more questions. Lawrence still held onto the lead….

It was down to Claire Barrow who needed to score at least 10 to make it into the Semi Final. The round followed a similar pattern to Sarah’s with points racking up as the target total approached. With very little wrong, Claire had reached 20, and continuing her impressive spectrum of answers, added a further 3 points taking her total to 23.

This was also the highest scoring GK Heat of the series so far with 42 points being scored.

Putting that into context of the series that is the second highest GK total of the 7 episodes so far and the 2^nd highest overall total (both 2^nd only to Frankie Franko). A solid performance by an obviously very strong quizzer. Certainly must be considered a contender for the overall crown this year!

Contestant	Specialist Subject	SS	GK	Total
Claire Barrow	The Gospel of St John	9	14	23
Lawrence Cook	Joe Calzaghe	8	11	19
Sarah Knapper	Joseph Stalin	9	9	18
Thomas De Bock	The Beach Boys	7	8	15

 

And the current Mastermind season leader board now looks like this…

Contestant	Total
Frankie Franko	27 (w)
Claire Barrow	23 (w)
Tom Lee	21 (w)
Emma Haley	21
Sally Wilson	21
Jackie Hunter	20 (w)
Steve Goddard	20 (w)
Jane McDonnell	20
Jacqueline Jones	19 (w)
Colin Wilson	19
Lawrence Cook	19
Poppy Mckenzie Smith	19
Andrew Fortyish	18
Ikenna Oguguo	18
Jamie Hall	18
Sarah Knapper	18
Edana Guest	17 (w)
Adrian Segens	17
Bryony Ashcroft	17
Alex Hardwick	16
Annabelle Dunwoody	16
Dani Cugini	16
Jeremy Sullivan	16
Kitty Grant	16
Jonathan Sargant	15
Thomad De Bock	15
Cecil Morgan	14
Peter Almond	14

 *the (w) indicates that score won the heat

  Other Mastermind season records this far –

·                  Highest GK Total – Frankie Franko – 15

·                  Highest SS Total – Frankie Franko – 12

·                  Highest Scoring Heat – Heat 1 – (Tom Lee, Sally Wilson, Emma Haley, Adrian Segens) – 80

·                  Highest scoring combined GK heat – Heat 7 - 42 points - (Claire Barrow, Lawrence Cook, Sarah Knapper, Thomas De Bock)

 

Online Quiz League Friendly - Part 2

 As promised, the second part of my Online Quiz League friendly set which was put together for play on Wednesday last week.

Round 5

1a	What word or symbol comes after the name “Disney” in the name of the companies on demand video streaming service?	+/Plus
1b	With the initials JD, which notorious criminal and bank robber, operated “The Terror Gang”, twice escaped jail, murdered a policeman and caused J Edgar Hoover to revamp the entire FBI?	John Dillinger
2a	At 4,421 metres high, Mount Whitney is the highest mountain in which mountain range, located in California? It shares a name with a mountain range in Andalucía that contains the highest point in mainland Spain.	Sierra Nevada
2b	What is the name of the television anthology series created by Charlie Brooker which focuses on the impact of new technology on society? Notable episodes include ,The Entire History of You’ and ‘Hated In The Nation’.	Black Mirror
3a	In 2007, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and which American Politician were the joint winners of the Nobel Peace Prize?	Al Gore
3b	After which man from the world of classic music, who died in 1953, is the international airport in Donetsk, Ukraine named?	Sergei Prokofiev
4a	The fifth largest city in Japan overall, what is the largest and most populated city on the island of Hokkaido?  It hosted the 1972 Winter Olympics.	Sapporo
4b	Subject of the 2020 ITV Show, White House Farm, what is the name of the now 59 year old man, who was convicted of murdering 5 members of his own family in 1985 on their farm in Essex? He initially appeared to be getting away with it, as he made out it was a murder suicide by his sister.	Jeremy Bamber

 

Round 6

1a	Which politician, who was Conservative Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1993 to 1997, was three times defeated in Tory leadership elections, in 1997, 2001 and 2005?	Ken Clarke
1b	Which crime writer is the author of the “Women’s Murder Club”  series including the books “1st to Die”, “3rd Degree” “7th Heaven” and “15th Affair”?	James Patterson
2a	In which Jim Carrey 2004 movie does he play Joel Barish, who discovers that his girlfriend, played by Kate Winslet, has had their relationship scientifically erased from her memory?	Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
2b	The third pillar of Islam is Zakat. What does Zakat oblige people to do?	Give to Charity/the Poor
3a	Which nation’s national Rugby Union team’s nickname is Los Teros after the Southern Lapwing, the country’s national bird? They have played in 4 World Cups, winning 3 matches.	Uruguay
3b	One word name needed: Which North East brewery has beers called Extinction Ale, Galapagos Stout and Beagle Blonde?	Darwin
4a	Which landlocked European country is bordered by only two other nations….Ukraine to the North and Romania to the South?	Moldova
4b	Overtaking Kobe in 2015 to become the 6th most populated city in Japan, what is the largest and most populated city on the Japanese island of Kyushu?  Careful giving your answer – we’re operating a swearbox.	Fukuoka

 

Round 7

1a	Which crime author, who passed away in 2017, is best known for her “alphabet series” of novels including the books “A is for Alibi”, “K is for Killer” and “V is for Vengeance”?	Sue Grafton
1b	Which politician, who was labour Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1974 to 1979, was twice defeated in Labour leadership elections, in 1976 and 1980?	Dennis Healey
2a	The second pillar of Islam is Salat. What does Salat oblige people to do?	Pray
2b	Which Jim Carrey film is based on the real-life story of the con artist, imposter and multiple-time prison escapee, Steven Jay Russell?  The character mentioned in the title of the movie however, is played by Ewan Mcgregor.	I Love You Phillip Morris
3a	On word name needed: Which brewery has beers called Iceberg, Steerage and Captain Smith's?	Titanic
3b	Ikale Tahi, meaning Sea Eagles, is the nickname of which national Rugby Union team? They have played in 8 World Cups, but only won 8 matches combined.	Tonga
4a	According to its website, which restaurant chain, with over 140 branches in the UK, has a name that literally means "naughty child" in Japanese?	Wagamama
4b	Which landlocked European country is bordered by only two other nations….Switzerland to the South and West and Austria to the North and East?	Liechtenstein

 

Round 8

1a	With the initials JD, which notorious criminal known, was known as the Milwaukee Cannibal and was convicted in 1992 of 15 murders, cannibalism and preserving body part?  He served 2 years in jail before being beaten to death	Jeffrey Dahmer
1b	A joint effort between the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel, what word comes after Brit in the name of on an on demand video service?	Box
2a	What is the name of the dark television anthology series created by Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith in which every episode contains a statue of a hare? Notable episodes include’ A Quiet Night In’ and ‘The 12 Days of Christine’.	Inside No. 9
2b	Mt Elbert is the highest point in which mountain range that runs from British Columbia to New Mexico?	The Rockies
3a	After which man from the world of classical music, who died in 1886, is Budapest’s international airport named?	Franz Liszt
3b	In 2002, which Secretary of Defence explained about "known knowns", "known unknowns" and "unknown unknowns" in an infamous speech referring to terrorism?	Donald Rumsfeld
4a	Known as the Muswell Hill Murderer, which serial killer was played by David Tennant in a 2020 ITV show? He was convicted of 6 counts of murder and died in Prison in 2018	Dennis Nielsen
4b	Which burger chain originating in Arlington Virginia in 1986 is named after Jerry Murrell and his 4 sons?	Five Guys